


the echoes of ice

by blueomi



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Bokuaka - Freeform, Bokuto Koutarou Has ADHD, Figure Skater Akaashi, Fluff, M/M, Meet-Cute, atsumu is an annoying brat, background sakuatsu, but I love him, hockey player bokuto, minor KageHina, pretty akaashi, theyre soulmates pretty much
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-21
Updated: 2020-12-23
Packaged: 2021-03-10 22:13:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,809
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28204401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blueomi/pseuds/blueomi
Summary: Now, something Akaashi Keiji did not know, was that it was quite rare for someone like Bokuto Koutarou to be lost for words. But the hockey player had been rendered absolutely speechless at the sight of what could only be an angel pirouetting above the ice.
Relationships: Akaashi Keiji/Bokuto Koutarou
Comments: 25
Kudos: 52





	1. stunned into silence

**Author's Note:**

> this was a very spur of the moment short fic inspired by fanart by @val_kurry on insta (: if it sucks, im sorry!

The winter sun set behind the gloomy clouds, allowing the last hints of light to seep in through the small holes between the skies. It shone in through the polished windows of the city arena, setting a distant orange hue over the contents of the building. 

After finishing lacing his skates, Akaashi flexed his hands out of habit, pushed up off of the bench and crossed over the matted floor to the entrance of the ice.

Akaashi stopped just before crossing the gate over the ice, smoothly pulling off his skate guards and setting them atop the boards of the rink. He quickly stretched his legs once more, pulling the blades of his skates up to meet his lower back.

Taking a deep breath of the chilled air rising up off of the ice, Akaashi stepped forward. The overwhelming feeling of familiarity washed over him as his legs automatically stabilized on the hard surface, feeling his weight balance between his two legs.

He pushed off, and closed his eyes, relishing in the comforting sound of the ice slicing beneath his blades. Akaashi turned around, adjusting his ankles as well as his speed to ensure that his transition into backwards skating would be well received by his legs.

Flawless, as always. Akaashi bent his knees rhythmically as he closed his eyes, skating loops around the rink. He had practically memorized its layout by this time, and rarely had to open his eyes.

As he began to slow down, satisfied with his quick warmup, Akaashi looked down at his toes. A small smile quirked on his lips at the sight of the white ice chipping into small granules, flying to either sides of his blade.

Akaashi was normally a person who became cold quite easily, but as years of his life went by, he found there was no better feeling than the swift air whistling past his ears, chilling his entire face as he glided over the ice.

His pace slowed dramatically, and he was now skating over the ice in easy slow circles, counting up to four in his head, ensuring that the rhythm of his blade slicing against the ice matched the pace echoing through the recesses of his mind.

Closing his eyes, Akaashi sped up a tad as he skated into his entrance for a double salchow. Pushing off the back edge of his right foot enough to do two tight turns in the air, he stuck his landing on the outside edge of his left foot, extending his right foot to maintain his balance as he did so.

His arms flew out from his sides, his fingers absorbing the chill in the air as he felt the exhilaration of his brain catching up with the fact that he truly had succeeded. No matter how many times he did so, it seemed to never get old.

And so it went, double salchow, toe loop, axel. Double lutz, salchow, double axel. Single axel, double toe loop, and so on and so forth. Akaashi was testing himself, ensuring that he felt good enough to attempt something he had been working on for some months, both mentally and physically.

Feeling the blood course through his veins, and the tips of his fingers tingle with both the cold and anticipation of his next jump, he knew he was ready, to at least try it.

Akaashi’s eyes fluttered closed as his legs began crossing over one another, gliding across the ice smoothly. He heard the bell on the door of the skate rink entrance tinkle in the distance, but paid no mind to it. After all, if he was feeling this good, he wouldn’t let the distraction of anyone else get in his way.

He skated up quickly, allowing his right free leg to quickly swing straight through, flexing his foot as he passed it by his left, which was preparing to turn. He quickly rotated his left foot a quarter of a turn, lifting his heel up off of the ice and pushing up off of his toe straight into the air.

Akaashi allowed his legs to intertwine around one another, his body almost becoming a straight line as he quickly pulled his arms into his chest, allowing his shoulders to feel the swift rotation as he turned _one, two.. three_ times, twisting his body fluidly for the final half of a turn. 

Landing harshly on the edge of his right blade, Akaashi’s left leg quickly untwined from its place around his right, kicking out straight behind him, mirroring the angle of his arms that had extended out straight from his chest.

A surge of pride flooded his chest, and Akaashi allowed a grin to spread across his face, feeling an echo of laughter bubbling up his chest. He wrapped his arms around his slender shoulders, burying his face in the crook of his elbow as he muffled his joyous laughter with the thin white sleeve of his skating outfit.

His skates slowed gradually to a stop, after he drifted around the ice in small circles, too caught up in his own happiness to care where on the ice he had been going.

Until moments later, he was aware of someone else in his proximity, their eyes practically boring into him. Akaashi pursed his lips and lifted his head from its place in his arms, turning his head behind him to see who it might be.

Now, something Akaashi Keiji did not know, was that it was quite rare for someone like Bokuto Koutarou to be lost for words. But the hockey player had been rendered absolutely speechless at the sight of what could only be an angel pirouetting above the ice, and then gliding above the surface so gracefully for a landing.

For the first time in his life, Koutarou had been stunned into silence.

It was ethereal, really. Truly heavenly. The moment he had walked into the rink, the quiet bell ringing upon his entrance, his ears were immediately caught by something else- the familiar sound of blades cutting up the ice.

Bokuto growled and almost turned around, realizing that whoever was there may be there for quite some time, but he decided for a moment, just to see who it might be, and what they were doing that was taking away _his_ time on the ice.

Yet, it was in fact, the best decision he had ever made.

The sight awaiting his unworthy eyes was a tall, slender man, skating swiftly into the entrance of a jump. Bokuto watched as his tendrils of curly black hair fanned out around his head, just as he leaped off of the edge of his toe into his jump. 

The dwindling orange hue of the setting sun lingered on the skater’s pale skin as he jumped, highlighting all of the sharp points of his body. The protrusion of his clavicle, the point of his nose, the bow of his lips; the extension of his scapula, and how at any moment, they looked as if they could grow into wings once again.

The loose white sleeves of the man’s performance shirt rippled in the momentum of his rotations, and then were tightly pulled into his chest to ensure a cleaner spin. It took a moment for Bokuto to realize exactly what he was attempting, but it soon dawned on him just as the figure skater was extending his leg to stick his landing. 

A triple axel. At that, one of the most flawless ones Bokuto had ever seen- executed by probably the most flawless _human_ Bokuto had ever seen.

The taller man let his practice bag gently fold onto the floor, choosing to continue silently observing the pretty skater. He watched from behind as the man wrapped his wiry arms around himself, burying his head of thick black curls into their embrace.

Moments later, bubbling peals of laughter echoed through the empty space of the arena. The man’s shoulders were trembling upon the realization of his success. And Bokuto simply could not tear his eyes away.

A moment too late, Bokuto realized he must have let his eyes linger for too long. The man’s head lifted from its bowed position, and Bokuto could see his neck twisting around in order to meet his eyes. He gulped nervously, feeling both guilt and anticipation pool in his stomach.

Gunmetal blue eyes met Bokuto’s own gold ones, framed by long, dark lashes. The taller man simply could not think straight any longer, and felt as if his knees were growing weak when he saw the skater’s pupils begin to dilate.

Akaashi turned around, his eyes meeting the frame of a very tall, _very_ muscular man, standing on the mats of the rink entrance. Two-toned hair of both silver and black lay tousled on his head, pieces of both colors falling into his eyes and framing his face.

His broad frame was only accentuated by the loose tank top he wore, with his defined biceps covered by a tight compression shirt. The same was the case for his legs, shorter black shorts with black training tights underneath them. Akaashi could not see his feet from the angle he stood at, but his educated guess was that the man was wearing a pair of sturdy hockey skates.

Infinite moments of serene silence seemed to pass between the two, as Akaashi observed the man, unaware of the fact that he himself was a miracle, purely for the feat of rendering Bokuto Koutarou speechless.

Akaashi felt his cheeks begin to tinge pink as the hockey player kept his eyes on him, wondering if there was something amess about his appearance. He supposed he didn’t fully mind it, however, since it gave him as much an equal chance to gaze upon the man.

He guessed that the sun had almost completely set behind the clouds by now, but the remaining shreds of light shone through the bottom cracks of the window, just reaching the left side of the stronger man’s face.

The illumination of the orange light cast shadows on the side of the man’s face that was not painted by the same hue, showing the depth of either side of his face. His gold irises were set ablaze by the dimming light, and his owlishly strong gaze was accentuated by the darkness of the encroaching evening. 

Despite the fact that Akaashi’s legs had been the only things supporting his weight on the ice, he felt as if they could give out at any moment if his eyes continued to lock with the steady gaze of the taller man. He tore his eyes away, which led him to stare at the man’s sculpted chest.

Akaashi decided there was really no win for him in this situation, so he brought his eyes back up to his face, and decided to speak. “Is there something I can do for you? I’m almost done, it’ll be just a moment.”

Bokuto’s tongue suddenly felt pounds too heavy for his mouth, his ears echoing with the melodious sound of the skater’s voice. A small part of him wasn’t surprised, however. Of course the man’s voice would quite literally sound as if it was too great for this world.

It was a low, smooth voice, soothingly gentle without even an attempt to be so. Bokuto attempted to respond to it.

“..H-hi.” he sputtered, voice coming out much louder than intended. He watched as an amused smirk curved up on the left side of the skater’s lips, and he realized embarrassedly that he had provided no answer to his question.

“Hello,” the man spoke, in his same lulling low voice. Bokuto saw the same lingering smile on his lips, giving him the feeling that the man was struggling to contain a bit of laughter. The sound of his voice was soon drowned out for a moment by the quiet hum of blades gently slicing through ice. The skater was now by the entrance to the ice, with Bokuto still stuck to the wall a few feet away. 

Bokuto took a breath in, grinding his teeth together in an attempt to alert his senses. “I- well, I was here to practice shooting, I guess.. And then, I saw you? And now.. We’re here.” he offered the skater a sheepish smile.

It was met with the same amused smile from earlier, and Bokuto felt warmth travel through his chest and up to his cheeks. “Yes, we are indeed here..”

Bokuto picked up the cue somehow, in his jumbled mental state. “Bokuto.. Koutarou.”

“Bokuto-san.” the figure skater finished, “Well, Bokuto-san. I’ll let you get to the ice. Hopefully I didn’t put too much of a dent into it.” he teased, grabbing his skate guards from where he had left them before on the wall. 

Bokuto nodded dumbly, still reeling from the fact of hearing his own name spill from such pretty lips, let alone from the silky smooth voice of the man. “Your name- what’s your name?” he babbled.

“Akaashi Keiji.” the man said quietly, lifting each leg to fit his skate guard onto each blade. When he had finished, he brought his eyes up to meet Bokuto’s once more. “I’m sure I’ll see you around soon, Bokuto-san. I’m here quite often.”

“Y-yeah.. Bye, Akaashi.” Bokuto said, the stumbling over his words coming to a minimum. Somewhat.

He watched for a moment longer as the slender man walked over to the bench, beginning to unlace his skates. Bokuto decided it would be quite weird to continue looking at him, and begrudgingly made his way over to the opposite side of the ice, where the practice goals were kept.

He grabbed his bag of pucks, and took off his skate guards at the ice entrance, setting up the temporary goals with ease. Skating around smoothly for a few minutes to get his blood pumping (and his brain moving) again, he failed to notice the lingering presence of Akaashi Keiji.

It wasn’t until minutes later, when he grabbed his first puck to begin shooting, that he finally heard the distant tinkle of the rink’s door bell. 

He missed his shot.


	2. aches and pains

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this got much more of a positive reaction than i thought it would hhhhh!! im so happy at least a few people are enjoying this cliche little story <3

The familiar clatter of a hockey puck against a practice goal sounded through the large, empty arena, echoing in Bokuto’s ears. The only thing more apparent than such an echo was the sound of Bokuto’s own ragged breath, amplified in his own ears.

The muscular man wiped sweat from his forehead, skating to either side of the rink and grabbing the goals, stacking them outside the ice with the other set. He skated off the ice lazily, fumbling over to the bench where he quickly unlaced his skates, stretching his legs.

He slipped on a pair of fresh socks, pulling on his old white Vans over them. Bokuto sighed with satisfaction, relishing in the feeling of a training session well done. Dusk had begun to settle over the evening, and Bokuto knew that the janitor of the city’s rink would be coming in any minute.

Tossing his skates in his bag, he pushed up off of the bench, exiting through the door. He found that even as he tried to focus solely on the road as he was driving back to his apartment, his mind was completely riddled with thoughts of the elegant figure skater he had met hours before. 

_Akaashi Keiji._ His name was almost as pretty as the man himself.

Bokuto knew that there was quite literally no use in attempting to push his interactions of the day off of his mind, and hesitantly succumbed to the bombarding of thoughts of the graceful man.

Luckily he had gotten home before he could become too distracted, pulling into his familiar parking space before walking up two flights of stairs and locating the key to his apartment that was strung onto the lanyard around his neck.

Upon opening the door, he was met with the familiar sound of his teammate, Hinata Shoyo’s laughter bouncing across the walls. It was intermingled with the sound of Atsumu’s hysterical chuckles, and there was only silence coming from the taller man who held Atsumu’s head in his lap.

“Awww, Shoyo, you didn’t tell me Tsum-tsum and Sakusa were coming over!” Bokuto whined., slipping off his shoes.

The redhead opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by Atsumu. “And you didn’t tell us ya were goin’ out to practice! We coulda gone with ya!” Atsumu yelled, a look of mock disapproval crossing over his face. 

Bokuto frowned in an attempt to show his friends that he was sorry, but deep down he was quite grateful that they hadn’t accompanied him to the rink. Otherwise he would never have gotten the chance to watch Akaashi skate, let alone talk to him. “I’m sooorry! Next time, I’ll let you guys know.” he promised, letting his face contort into a genuine smile.

“How about tomorrow?” Hinata cut in, looking up from his phone, where his fingers were still rapidly moving across the keyboard.

All three pairs of eyes were now on Bokuto. “Yeah, what abou’tomorrow?” Atsumu started, “Same time as ya just practiced right now, maybe? Or should we go a little earlier, like 6:30?” He said, looking up at Sakusa.

“6:30 works for me,” the black haired man said, smiling softly down at the blond in his lap.

Hinata looked up from his phone once again, nodding enthusiastically. “Okay, 6:30 it is!”

Bokuto could feel dread settling in his stomach, but did not have the heart or guts to reveal such a thing to his friends. Instead he just nodded, motioning that he needed to go take a shower.

“Omi and I’ve gotta get goin’ anyway, see y’all tomorrow at 6:30!” Atsumu said excitedly, getting up from his place in Sakusa’s lap.

Bokuto just nodded once more, throwing his practice back into his room, and then running off into the shower. As the hot water washed over his sore body, soothing the slight aches, he found his mind running away from him. He covered his ears with his hands, hoping to shut off some of the insufferable noise from his mind. It didn't work, but then again, it didn't usually.

Akaashi would probably already be at the rink by then, and he and his friends would be interrupting him. He felt horrible on the inside, already guiltily overthinking that he would be interrupting the skater’s practice, and also perhaps getting his friends' hopes up for a practice that wouldn't be able to go through.

His teammates assumed that no one would be there in the evening, seeing as most junior skaters came with their parents in the morning or midday, but Bokuto knew that someone else would already have been there, and they would be interrupting him even further than Bokuto had already done that day.

He forcefully shoved the thoughts out of his mind as he began to feel the faucet run slightly colder, and then shut the water off, wrapping himself in a dry towel. His teammates and him would just go do something else for practice, it'd be fine, right? 

Bokuto didn't fully believe his own reassurance, but chose to act as if he did so, purely to soothe his crawling nerves. He strolled into his unorderly room, picking a pair of black sweatpants from his drawer, slipping them over his legs after a pair of boxers.

It was perhaps a bit early for him to be falling asleep, but he knew he didn’t have much else to do anyway. 

Laying in the silence of his dark bedroom (and his own mind) Bokuto found that Akaashi was dancing across his mind in more ways than one- both worriedly, and as he had done those hours ago, ever so gracefully. Bokuto decided to shut away the worry, as best he could, choosing once again to focus on the warm memories of meeting Akaashi for the first time.

As his eyes began to slowly slip shut, his body succumbing to the heavily comforting warmth of sleep, the very last thing he could remember is the way Akaashi had so gracefully said his name.

The next day passed by torturously slow, almost as if it was taunting it in Bokuto’s face the way he would ruin his friends plans in the coming hours. He sat on his bed in a bit of a mood, hearing the excited voice of Hinata bounce through the apartment as he talked animatedly to Kageyama over the phone.

In a way it was a bit of a comfort for Bokuto, seeing as he didn’t do very well with silence. He always felt a need to fill it up with some noise, or fact. He was grateful that the apartment echoed with the sound of Hinata’s joyous voice. It at least took some of his thoughts away from the disappointment he was soon to force upon his friends.

The only silence he had ever felt comfortable in was.. yesterday’s, really. Despite that his brain was being absolutely scrambled by the pure beauty that was Akaashi, he felt as if he could breathe in the icy air of the rink and be content with the chasm of silence stretching between them.

Perhaps the day wasn’t plodding by tortuously slow if his mind was infested with thoughts of Akaashi Keiji.

6:30 had finally rolled around, and Bokuto could feel the beginnings of his stomach crawling with hunger. He knew from past mistakes that he should not eat before training of any sort, so he instructed his stomach to just shut up already. He wasn’t sure what kind of training they would even be able to do, but he didn’t eat anything anyway.

He figured him and Hinata would be meeting Atsumu and Sakusa at the rink, so he waited in the living room for the shorter redhead, who came bounding out of his bedroom a few minutes later, dressed almost the same as Bokuto, except with brighter colors.

“Ready, Shoyo?” Bokuto said, smothering the festering nerves in his stomach with a wide grin.

“Yep! I’m excited.” Hinata smiled, pulling the door open and allowing Bokuto to step through first. The two of them jogged down the two sets of stairs to the parking lot, and then Bokuto unlocked his car to let Hinata put his bag into the back.

The car ride was never silent with Hinata there, thank heavens. He was quietly yammering about some new story Kageyama had told him on the phone the day before, which eventually led to the ginger proclaiming his love for him for what, the 200th time?

The drive to the arena was short, and Bokuto pulled into a parking space, minutes later seeing Sakusa pull into one just across the way. Both pairs of men got out of their cars, grabbing their bags, Atsumu already yelling across the space. “Hi Bokkun, hi Shoyo!”

He was immediately met with a look of disappointment from Sakusa, who rolled his eyes at the fact that the people he called his best friends seemed to have an incurable obsession with shouting when there was absolutely no reason to be doing so.

Atsumu ignored it as always, instead pulling Sakusa across the parking lot with him to walk with Hinata and Bokuto.

Bokuto cringed upon hearing the familiar jingle of the entrance bell, and listened for the sound of blades cutting up the ice, which he indeed did hear, even over the noise of Hinata and Atsumu speaking.

The four men walked the short way into the main rink entrance, Hinata and Atsumu’s faces automatically being tainted with disappointed looks. “Aw dang, looks like we won’t get to practice today.” Hinata frowned.

However, Bokuto’s face was different altogether. The same look of awe had donned his face along with the realization of what Akaashi was performing. Another trick, but not the same as yesterday’s. Perhaps a lutz?

The slender man spun quickly through the air, the fading sun in a hue of pink that day. It washed over Akaashi’s face and upper body, this time, Bokuto noticed the way that the line of his mandible sliced a harsh contrast into the soft light. His eyes were closed, once again, and only begun to flutter open as his legs began to unwind from one another.

A _thunk_ echoed over the ice as Akaashi’s skate plummeted down to the surface. After Akaashi stuck his landing gracefully, he turned around smoothly, quickly meeting eyes with Bokuto as he had done yesterday, also accompanied by a soft smile and a nod of his head.

Bokuto’s mouth goes dry, unable to command the muscles of his neck to allow him to do the same back to him. Bokuto just sat, still completely entranced by Akaashi’s presence, but Atsumu had certainly not failed to notice their minor interaction.

“Aww, Bokkun, do ya know him? Is this why ya didn’t want us to practice with ya yesterday? Cuz ya have a secret figure skater lover?” Atsumu teased, grabbing Bokuto’s shoulder and jostling him.

Bokuto turned a deep cherry red, and sent a harsh glare Atsumu’s way. “No, Tsumu! I- Yesterday, I just happened to be alone, I promise!” Bokuto was horrible at lying, so it was a good thing he was hopelessly red already.

Sakusa didn’t seem amused by any of Atsumu’s antics, (as per usual) and instead spoke up over Atsumu’s relentless shouting. “Anyway, we could go do some weight training for a bit instead, come back sometime in the morning? Atsumu seems to have no trouble kicking the younger kids out.” 

Bokuto nodded much too excitedly, and quickly began pushing Atsumu out of the building. He felt sorry that he hadn’t been able to wave back to Akaashi, and he just desperately hoped that the skater would be there the next day. “Yeah, let’s all just go to the gym!” Bokuto hurriedly said, still pushing Atsumu out into the parking lot.

By this time, the blond had begun to sing a song about Bokkun and his figure skating lover, and his loud voice didn’t stop echoing through the sky until Sakusa had slammed him into the car, with a look of fond exasperation.

Bokuto was a bit rattled, and knew he wouldn’t be able to focus on the road so well, and instead tossed his keys to Hinata, who got the message. They sat in the car together for a moment, before Hinata spoke up. “So, do you like him or something, Bo?”

Bokuto wrinkled his nose and chose his words carefully. “I just met him, Shoyo! What, do you think I’m in love with him already or something?”

The telltale blush patching up onto Bokuto’s face and ears told Hinata everything he needed to know, but instead he just laughed, patting his best friend on the shoulder. The conversation soon shifted to Hinata’s most recent squat lift record, and how Bokuto could apparently lift double of it in his sleep.

Bokuto dragged himself into the shower, his muscles aching with the decision of attempting to do push-ups with Hinata sitting on him, which in turn, led to Atsumu crushing him, with motivating shouts of _"You can do it, Bokkun! I'm not that heavy!"_ Needless to say, he could not do it. Despite Bokuto being the strongest one there, there was absolutely no hope for him to be able to carry two hockey players on his back. 

His muscles most certainly felt the ache, so he turned the water's temperature much hotter than he had it the day before. Its scalding temperature soothing his aches and pains, the steam seeming to alleviate the din of his minds thoughts, at least for a little while.

However, upon leaving the shower, his mind was immediately bombarded with thoughts of Akaashi, also sadly tinged by Atsumu’s horribly off tune song of Bokuto’s “lover.”

Bokuto fulfilled the same routine as the night before, stretching on a pair of sweats over boxers, and then shutting off the lights, practically throwing himself into his bed, being sure to check that his alarm was on for the next morning. Soon after, his dreams of the night were of a slim, elegant figure bounding across the ice. Triple lutzes and all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im quite sorry if there wasn't enough interesting bokuaka action today, there will be more coming soon! i tried to make up for it with atsumu being a lovably annoying little shit, so i hope u guys all love him as much as i do (:


	3. comforts of quiet

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i was feeling kinda insecure ab my writing today, i hope this chapter is alright /:

Bokuto shot up with his alarm the next morning, blankets pooling at his waist as he allowed his eyes to adjust to the beams of sunlight streaming in through the slits of his window’s shutters.

It wasn’t early, per se, he just was very accustomed to having an alarm to remind him of something. 

He hopped to his closet, putting on one of the many variations of his practice outfit. White training tights with black shorts over them, as well as a black compression top with a white tank top over it. He grabbed his knee pads out of his drawer, as well as his practice bag and stick, and then went to the living room, where Hinata was already waiting for him.

“Ready?” Bokuto smiled.

Hinata nodded, and then Bokuto realized in fact that he himself was not ready.

He ran to the kitchen and filled up his water bottle, and then rifled through the cabinet above the sink until he found his familiar pill bottle, from which he took one every morning. It was unwise to take one on an empty stomach, this he knew, but it was even less smart to eat before a practice. So, he sucked it up, downing the Ritalin with a sip of his water.

He soon bounded out of the kitchen, finally meeting Hinata with a smile on his face. “ _Now,_ I’m ready.” he laughed, pushing the door open for Hinata and then locking it behind them.

The drive to the arena that day was filled with Hinata telling stories about Kenma, whom he had gone to see last night. Bokuto had always wondered what interactions between the two men consisted of, considering that someone like Kenma would seemingly want to stay far away from someone like Shoyo. But nonetheless, it seemed that it worked out okay, seeing as Hinata had more than enough stories to fill the short car ride with.

Bokuto pulled into the parking lot just in time to see Atsumu, with an annoyed expression covering his face, ushering young teens out of the arena. Sakusa stood by his side, his head in the palms of his hands, fingers grabbing into his hair.

Bokuto snorted aloud, nowhere near surprised. He and Hinata had barely gotten out of the car to grab their bags when Atsumu was leaping across the parking lot to meet them, pulling Sakusa by his elbow. “G’morning Shoyo! Mornin’ Bokkun! Sadly I didn’t see yer figure skatin’ lover when I went and cleared out the ice.”

Bokuto narrowed his eyes at the blond, hoping his cheeks or ears were not turning red. 

“It’s embarrassing to be with him at this point.” Sakusa deadpanned. “I’m never sure what to expect of him, but I never thought I would grow old enough to see a grown man nudging teenagers with a hockey stick to get off the ice.” 

Atsumu said nothing, just smiled smugly and laid his head on Sakusa’s shoulder. Then, he spoke. “Whatever, Omi. I’m the reason we even have space t’practice. So shut yer ass up and let’s get inside.” he teased, once again pulling the taller man against his will across the parking lot.

Hinata and Bokuto made eye contact, and then followed the blond with a reluctant sigh.

After they’d all put their skates on, prepared the ice, and began warming up, Sakusa spoke. “By the way, I am fully expecting to go out of this with _out_ a nose bleed. I’m looking at you, Atsumu. When we’re not practicing with full gear on, the point is to have fun.” he groaned.

“Nonsense, Omi! The point is always t’win.” he smirked. “Anyway, we’ll switch it up this time. Teams are me n’ Shoyo versus Omi and Bokkun.” he quickly glided across the ice to grab a puck, flinging it onto the floor. “Readyset go!”

The puck was already under his stick, eliciting a groan from both Sakusa and Bokuto. They were both fully aware of how this would end up.

Yet, the damage was minimal after the match had come to an end. As the four men strolled back into the parking lot damp with sweat, Sakusa sported a bloody _lip,_ to which Atsumu had shouted, _“See, Omi! Not a bloody nose. I fulfilled yer expectation, huh?”_ Which, in turn, earned him a punch to the face, explaining the bruised nose. Bokuto was bitterly modeling a bruised eye, courtesy of Atsumu jamming his elbow into him. 

Hinata appeared unscathed, which only enticed more sour comments from Sakusa, claiming that he could no longer play with Atsumu, considering that being both on and off his team subjected him to torture.

“See, wasn’t that fun?” Atsumu grinned, stopping in front of Sakusa’s car. Hinata smiled in agreement.

“For you.” Sakusa grumbled, being met with nods from Bokuto.

“I like playin’ with ya guys. Kinda nice we get this week off of practice, t’be honest.” Atsumu thought out loud, which was met with genuine agreement from the other men.

“Today was the one time I _missed_ playing hockey in full gear.” Bokuto teased. 

“Yeah, yeah. Whatever.” Atsumu rolled his eyes, climbing into the front seat of the car. “We should do this again before regular pr-” Sakusa slammed the door on him, soon climbing into the driver's seat.

“See ya, Bokuto, bye Hinata.” he spoke, the faintest ghost of a smile echoing on his lips.

Bokuto and Hinata both chuckled at the scene, which was something quite regular between the two of them. Not long after, they both climbed into Bokuto’s car and drove home.

Hours later, Bokuto had begun his second drive of the day to the arena. The sun had begun to go down behind the high rise buildings of the city, and the medley of oranges and yellows only reminded Bokuto of the skater he had met days before. Who, embarrassingly, he was hoping to see at that moment.

He pulled into the familiar parking lot once again, walking in swiftly through the door and smiling slightly at the ring of the bell.

The distant sound of blades cutting ice was apparent upon the moment of his arrival, and an even wider grin encompassed his face at the sound.

He quickly flicked his eyes upward as he stepped into the main area, this time being met with Akaashi in a flowy red shirt, instead of white. His mouth dries at the sight, just a tad.

He barely even registers that Akaashi has stopped moving, until the man is once again pressed to the rim of the ice.

“Good evening, Bokuto-san.” he murmurs, once again glancing over the tank top that gives him a plentiful view of Bokuto’s arms. “What happened to your eye?” Akaashi asks, concern melting into his tone. He begins to raise his hand in a gesture to reach out, but slows down

It took Bokuto a minute to register the words, he was perhaps a bit too focused on the way that the pink of the setting sun seeped into Akaashi’s porcelain skin and blended into the vibrant red of his outfit. “Oh! This. Well, I dunno if you remember the blond guy that I came in here with,” a deep red overtook Bokuto’s features upon remembering exactly what Atsumu had said last time he and Akaashi had been there together. “But yeah. He gets a little.. competitive. We just play games for fun together since we get regular practice off for the week. He may be taking fun a little too seriously.” Bokuto laughed. 

Akaashi smiled warmly at the giddy sound reverberating across the empty walls. “As long as you’re okay.” Silence ensues as he catches Bokuto’s eye, and then the same amused grin as always reappears on his face. “What are you doing here, then, Bokuto-san? You’ve already practiced.”

Bokuto tugs his bottom lip between his lip, an old nervous habit. The ever-present blush rises up onto his cheeks and the tips of his ears. His eyes are anchored to Akaashi’s, in which he can see the pink fragments of light dissolving into blue. “Well, I dunno. I mean, no! I do know.. But like, it’s weird.”

Akaashi raised an eyebrow. “Spit it out, Bokuto-san. From what little I know about you, you’re not at all weird.”

Bokuto huffed exasperatedly. “Just like you said, I don’t know you very well. But I like watching you skate, you’re very talented. And you’re nice, especially when you’re talking to me.”

Pink tinged Akaashi’s cheeks once again, his face seeming to match the beams of light washing over the room. His lips stretched into a sweet smile as well. “See? Not weird at all, Bokuto-san. And thank you, I’m glad you enjoy watching me skate. You’re a very good audience.”

Bokuto grinned, bringing up a trembling hand to brush a stray strand of hair out of his sight. Silence filled the space between them, but it was as familiar as it had been on the moment Bokuto laid eyes on Akaashi.

“How long’ve you been skating, Akaashi?” Bokuto inquired.

“I’ve been doing it for quite some time.” the shorter man thought for a moment. “Since I was about 7, so.. what, 18 years?”

Bokuto nodded thoughtfully. “That’s so cool!” the words came out louder than intended, and they echoed through the air. He lowered his tone despite his excitement, with a sheepish look on his face. “Skating is so graceful, like you, Akaashi! I’m too big for it. Probably why I play hockey; I’m much better at knocking into people.” he chuckled.

Akaashi smiles wistfully. “It’s not _that hard,_ Bokuto-san. With a bit of practice, you could probably do a trick of some sort. Bring your skates next time I see you, we’ll see what you can learn.” he teased. 

Bokuto shook his head insistently. “No, it’s hopeless Akaashi. And besides, I wouldn’t even look half as pretty as you do while you’re skating. You were so fluid and graceful, and the sun was setting behind you, shining over all the bones of your face. I don’t think I could ever be that pretty.” he mused, staring down honestly at Akaashi.

Akaashi pursed his lips, absorbing the words the taller man had just uttered. “Why thank you, Bokuto-san.” he whispered, still jarred. “But I think you underestimate yourself.” he frowned, getting his voice back moments later.

He pushed off of the wall, once again getting a feel for the ice underneath his blades. He skated in a small circle, swiftly switching from his left foot to his right, turning a half circle. Pushing off the edge of his toe, he rotated once through the air, and landed easily on the back outside edge of his right blade, relishing the feeling of the cool air whipping across his face.

“See, easy!” he smiled, skating easily back to the wall. “Do you know what that was called?”

Bokuto’s eyes had widened, so easily impressed by anything Akaashi performed. “A toe loop, maybe?”

Akaashi nodded, impressed. “Exactly, Bokuto-san.”

Bokuto rolled his eyes, slumping over the wall of the ice dramatically. “You make it look so easy, Akaashi.” he grumbled. “I would trip over my own feet.”

Akaashi smothered a laugh with his hands. “I think the real accomplishment would be making something a little more difficult look easy, really.”

“Like the one you did the first time?” Bokuto questioned seconds after.

Akaashi turned pink for a moment, nodding. “Yes, like the triple axel. Not to flatter myself, but that’s quite a difficult jump. I think I’m doing okay, considering my free skate is in a few months.” he smiled.

“What do you mean? You’re doing great!” Bokuto smiled giddily. “You’ll win the free skate, Akaashi.”

“Thank you, Bokuto-san.” Akaashi smiled.

More silence stretched between the two of them. Bokuto found once again that it was something he could tolerate. Perhaps even more than that, really. Something he could appreciate. 

“Anyway, do you mind if I get to practicing?” Akaashi asked. “I had just started a little while ago when you came in.”

Bokuto nodded earnestly, finding a place on a bench. “Is it okay, for me to stay and watch?”

Akaashi chuckled under his breath, feeling every rushed beat of his heart pounding in his chest. “Stay as long as you’d like.” And with that, the skater turned, a wide grin mirroring the one stretching over Bokuto’s lips.

As the sun once again faded through the polished panes of the arena’s windows, Bokuto found that the figure skater was every bit as beautiful as the first day he had seen him, perhaps even more so.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay so that was thaaat /: lmk ur thoughts, please! comments r my favorite thing ever. i hope u guys enjoyed tsumus tomfoolery, i love him more and more with each shenanigan he pulls. anyway, till next time. i love u all <3


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